GATE

Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) Information
The Etiwanda School District GATE program serves students identified as GATE in grades four through eight. Eligible students in ESD are initially tested for potential GATE identification at the end of their 3rd grade year. Once students are identified as GATE, their designation as such will remain while they are enrolled in the Etiwanda School District. Students entering Etiwanda with a previous GATE identification will be recognized as GATE students.

How does a student qualify for GATE?
Qualification for GATE is a two part process that includes: student grades and the CogAT exam.

The first step begins with analyzing a child’s classroom grade performance over time in two subject areas: English Language Arts and Math.

Note: In elementary school ELA is three distinct areas (reading, writing, language) each of which is reported by an individual letter grade. In middle school all three areas are combined for a single letter grade.

At the end of the second trimester, the grade point averages for all students in grades 3-7 are analyzed. Students earning a combined GPA of 3.75 or higher for trimesters one and two in the areas of ELA and Math are invited to take the CogAT exam during the concluding weeks of the third trimester. PLEASE NOTE – parent permission is required for students to take the CogAT.

The second step for Gate qualification includes the CogAT exam. The Etiwanda School District uses the CogAT form 6 as the assessment tool for identifying exceptional academic abilities. The CogAT is administered at each school site in a group setting – see schedule below. The following levels of the CogAT are administered based upon a child’s grade:

Students are assessed in three content domains to ensure a balanced view of the child’s ability. The three areas are:

Verbal analysismeasures a student’s ability to remember and transform sequences of words to understand them and to make inferences and judgments.

Quantitative analysismeasures a student’s understanding of quantitative concepts and relationships.

Non-verbal analysismeasures a student’s ability to reason using pictures and geometric shapes. This section in particular reduces the impact a child’s language may play in their overall score.

Based on CogAT scores, students qualify for GATE if their scores are:

Composite Grade Level Percentile Rank score of 90+
orStandard Age Score of 128+ in any of the three areas assessed

Explanation of CogAT scores.
The Composite Grade Percentile Rank score is a percentile for all three sections. This number combines all three scores and indicates where your child stands by comparison to other students in the same grade who took the test. For example, a child’s Composite Grade Percentile Rank score of 98 indicates that this student did better on all three sections combined than 98 percent of the other students.
The Standard Age Score (SAS) is a normalized standard score for each of the three areas assessed. This score allows educators to compare the level of cognitive development for an individual compared to others in their age group.Students are grouped by this measurement in one month increments. The SAS has a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 16. Therefore, an SAS score of 100 is average. A student with an SAS of 130 would have a faster rate and a higher level of development in a particular area than a typical student would have in their same age group.

Retaking the CogAT:
Students may take the CogATone additional timein a future year providing that their current GPA is 3.75 or higher for trimesters 1 and 2 and if their previous CogAT scores were in the 85thto 89thpercentile rank.Additional resources:

The Etiwanda School District is dedicated to promoting high standards in curriculum, instruction, performance and personal behavior. It is our goal that each student achieve academic excellence and develop respect for self and others so that they become contributing members of our culturally diverse society. The responsibility for the development of these qualities in all students is accomplished through a cooperative effort among students, parents, staff and community.